Archives for January 2010

Nine months into this new stage of life called mothering and it’s been the ride of a lifetime. And one that I’d be happy get back in line and ride again. I truly love being a mom and am thankful for the little blessing that God has entrusted to our family.

Once I knew that a little one was on the horizon, questions started immediately running through my head. How am I going to do this thing called mothering? Would I make my own baby food? Or buy stock in Gerber? Attachment parenting? Schedule? Breastfeed? Bottle? Cloth diapering? Disposables? Way too many choices. And with so many looming options, I started to wonder where the manual was–especially since these days even the simplest child’s toy includes a manual.

And each person seems to know (or think they do) the protocol to mother ‘THE RIGHT WAY’. And it was my experience that everyone also wanted to share it–even down to the cashier at Kroger. Even when random strangers don’t care to share how you should parent, there are equally as many people willing to be the naysayers to all your good intentions: “Oh, we’ll see how long THAT will last…” (especially in regards to my cloth diapering choice & desire to breastfeed.)

As everyone does, we have done what works for our family. I’m not naïve to think our way is the BEST way. But OBVIOUSLY, we do what works best for us, or we would do otherwise. And each set of parents will chart their own parenting blueprint, and I’m truly fine with that.

I started feeding Pierson solid’s at 6 months. I purposed to make his baby food because I figured it would not only be cheaper, but I also figured that Gerber couldn’t do any better than my fruits, veggies, and blender could. And it has worked for us! Amazingly, my budget stayed the same, and no one as gone hungry.

Lately, making baby food has become increasingly easy. Here’s why.

On Wednesday, I made an easy, yummy teriyaki noodle dish. (THANKS, ALDI!!! Why I love Aldi: This yummy 2 lb veggie/noodle/teriyaki sauce was $3.00; the chicken was $2.00. Total meal =$5, plus a couple dashes of extra sauces to kick it up a notch.)

How the baby food happens: I rinse off any extra spiciness.

I go to town with Pampered Chef’s food chopper until the food looks unappetizing and baby food like.

And here’s the verdict:

I did a full month and a half of pureed fruits and veggies, then started introducing this type of baby food. He loves it! The past couple of weeks, little guy has eaten teriyaki chicken noodles, Stir fry, beans and rice, curried chicken salad, zucchini chicken casserole, chicken pot pie…you get the picture! Easy schmeezy baby food that takes no extra work (other than ensuring your meals are healthy & balanced!)

As Pierson gets older,
he may ask,
“Mom, in this picture, why do I have two feet in the snow? Yet you only have one?”
And I will reply,
“Because it was too stinkin’ cold to make the other footprint.”

And you thought this would be sentimental…

Now, before you report me to CPS with a crazy story like placing naked babies in the snow, I also REALLY did inflict the cold upon myself on BOTH feet as we were mere inches from the inside (Here’s proof). We only stayed outside long enough to make the footprints, make some yellow snow (just seeing if you were still reading…), and give Pierson a couple of seconds to ponder all the white stuff. And we both loved it, survived, and lived to tell about it. The end.

Truly, one day he MAY ask why I’m as crazy as I am, and I’ll tell him, “Because I like it that way.”

Daily, at noon, I return from work with a Little One’s face plastered in the window. And on that adorable little smushy face is a huge grin which echoes the feelings of my heart. It’s the absolute best part of my day. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize the reason for his excitement: I have returned His Meals on Wheels has arrived! Here’s the sight that greets me.

Once lunch has been eaten, Pierson and I enjoy an afternoon filled with delightful activities: reading the same books over and over again (and a few new ones–thanks, Library!), singing songs, playing with the same toys frequently, and ‘johnny-jumping’ repeatedly. Sometimes, we multi-task and combine activities.

It most definitely can be monotonous, but I wouldn’t have it ANY other way. I truly enjoy being a mom.

And I guess that you could say I’m learning a lot, though not in ways you might expect. Imagine my surprise this week, when I learned that GUINEA PIGS live on farms. EXCUSE ME???? SERIOUSLY???? I’ve traveled past many farms in my life and even visited a few, but I’ve yet to see a field of grazing guinea pigs.

I checked with my husband, who grew up on a farm and was high in the ranks of FFA–my own personal resident expert, if you will. He hadn’t heard of these types of farms, either. So, now I must do more research on this matter. Kindly excuse me, I must go consult with the real experts: Dr. Suess, (Baby) Einstein, and a monkey named George.

In one week, Pierson goes to the doctor for his 9 month check up. Where on earth is time going???

Every time I take Pierson to the doctor, he is given his stats: height, weight, & head circumference. The numbers are first given in actual measurements, but then we are also given a percentage, letting us know how he measures up with the rest of the world.

He started out as a MAJOR porker. And he spit up breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks continually for the next 7 months. Each time we’d hit up the doctor’s office, his percentage would diminish. But the doctors weren’t worried because he continually gained- so I didn’t worry. I just made sure that there was a continual supply of urp rags ready for use.

One thing that stikes is me funny is that parents are very quick to share and brag about their child’s percentage as if the child, by some great merit, won a national title. “My kid is in the so-and-so percentile. What’s yours?”

A funny thought I’ve had while taking Pierson to these said checkups is this: What if adults received the same type of percentage rating? I envision the conversation something like this:

Adult #1: Just had my annual appointment.

Adult #2: Really? How did it go? What was your weight percentage?

Adult #1: I’m in the 35th percentile.

Adult #2: That’s incredible! Weren’t you just in the 25th percentile??? You’ve really gained! I’m still only in the 10th percentile!

Adult #1: Yeah??? Well…your head’s obviously bigger than mine. Yours is so big, it’s probably AT LEAST in the 90th.